× ''Festulolium'' is a

nothogenus In botanical nomenclature, a hybrid may be given a hybrid name, which is a special kind of botanical name, but there is no requirement that a hybrid name should be created for plants that are believed to be of hybrid origin. The ''International Co ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

s in the grass

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Poaceae Poaceae ( ), also called Gramineae ( ), is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos, the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivate ...

. Naturally occurring hybrids, they are the result of crosses between species of two questionably distinct grass

genera Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family as used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In binomial nomenclature, the genus name forms the first part of the binomial s ...

, ''

Festuca ''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on ...

'' (the fescues) and ''

Lolium ''Lolium'' is a genus of tufted grasses in the bluegrass subfamily (Pooideae). It is often called ryegrass, but this term is sometimes used to refer to grasses in other genera. They are characterized by bunch-like growth habits. ''Lolium'' ...

'' (the ryegrasses), and the hybrids show phenotypic similarities to both parents. This type of intergeneric hybridization is quite rare, and is indicated by a multiplication symbol before the name. The name ''Festulolium'' is an example of a

portmanteau In linguistics, a blend—also known as a blend word, lexical blend, or portmanteau—is a word formed by combining the meanings, and parts of the sounds, of two or more words together.

word, a combination of the two parents' names.

Species

There are three accepted naturally occurring hybrid species found in Europe, where the parental ranges overlap, and a number of artificial crosses used in lawn applications. *'' × Festulolium hercynicum'' (Wein) Banfi, Galasso, Foggi, Kopecký & Ardenghi (''

Festuca rubra ''Festuca rubra'' is a species of grass known by the common name red fescue, creeping red fescue or the rush-leaf fescue. It is widespread across much of the Northern Hemisphere and can tolerate many habitats and climates. It is best adapted to w ...

'' × '' Lolium pratense'') *'' × Festulolium pseudofallax'' (Wein) Banfi, Galasso, Foggi, Kopecký & Ardenghi ('' Festuca ovina'' × ''L.pratense'') *'' × Festulolium wippraense'' (Wein) Banfi, Galasso, Foggi, Kopecký & Ardenghi ('' Festuca heterophylla'' × ''L.pratense'')

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Festulolium Poaceae genera Plant nothogenera Pooideae